Terps Travel To Duke And Wake Forest For ACC Volleyball Action

Sept. 23, 2004

MARYLAND (5-5, 0-0 ACC) at DUKE (9-3, 0-1 ACC)
FRI., SEPT. 24, 2004 * 7:00 p.m.
DURHAM, N.C. * CAMERON INDOOR STADIUM (9,314)

MARYLAND at WAKE FOREST (8-2, 0-0 ACC)
SAT., SEPT. 25, 2004 * 6:00 p.m.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. * REYNOLDS GYM (2,000)

The University of Maryland volleyball team opens the ACC portion of its schedule this weekend with matches at conference rivals Duke and Wake Forest. The Terrapins have won four-straight matches and are coming off a tournament title at the Maryland Invitational last weekend, where they went 3-0 with victories over Northern Arizona, Georgetown and Butler. Friday's match in Cameron Indoor Stadium with the Blue Devils is at 7 p.m., while Saturday's contest vs. the Demon Deacons is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.

Noting The Terrapins

Maryland evened its overall record at 5-5 and remained unbeaten in 2004 at Comcast Center Pavilion with four victories last week. The Terps swept non-conference foe Towson on Sept. 15 before taking the Maryland Invitational title with weekend wins over Northern Arizona, Georgetown and Butler. Senior outside hitter Maria DiLivio was named MVP of the tournament while fellow seniors Aimee Huddleston and Sarah Treadwell were selected to the all-tournament team.

The Blue Devils will be looking for revenge, as Maryland ended their season a year ago in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament in Orlando, Fla. The match, a thrilling five-game contest, was the start of Maryland's impressive run to the ACC Championship.

Maryland did not lose to either Duke or Wake Forest in the 2003 season.

As a team, Maryland is averaging over three blocks a game and ranks second in the conference in the category. Leading the way is junior middle blocker Rachel Wagener, who has recorded 49 blocks on the year and is averaging 1.40 per game. Also providing strong blocking is junior Stephanie Smith, who has posted a team-high eight solo blocks on the year and averages 1.29 total blocks per game.

Joining the middles on the conference top-10 lists is Treadwell, who ranks seventh in digs (3.74 per game) and Huddleston, who is seventh in assists (11.49).

Two of a Kind

Two Terps are poised to surpass important milestones in upcoming matches. Sarah Treadwell will look to post her 1,000th-career dig as she needs just 24 more to accomplish the feat. Maria DiLivio, meanwhile, will look to join the elite club of Terrapins who have registered 1,000 career kills and digs. She needs 75 more kills for 1,000 on her career and is also on pace for 1,000 digs.

The hard-hitting combination of Treadwell and DiLivio has sparked the Maryland offense in 2004. The duo accounts for 235 of the Terps' 512 kills, roughly 46 percent. Treadwell averages a team-leading 3.63 kills and 3.74 digs per game, while DiLivio is right behind her with 3.09 kills and 3.17 digs per game.

Last Time Out: Maryland 3, Butler 2

Senior Maria DiLivio saved her best effort of the young season for the final match of the Maryland Invitational, as she was named the tournament's most valuable player and the Terrapins defeated Butler, 3-2 (30-24, 29-31, 30-22, 29-31, 15-9), at Comcast Center Pavilion. DiLivio finished the night with 17 kills, a career-high 25 digs and four blocks. With the victory, the Terrapins won their fourth-straight match and evened their overall record at 5-5.

With a perfect 3-0 record on the weekend, the Terps were named champions of the tournament. Butler was the runner-up.

Joining DiLivio on the all-tournament team were Terrapins Sarah Treadwell and Aimee Huddleston. Over three matches in the tournament, DiLivio averaged 3.82 kills per game, and 4.18 digs per game en route to being named most valuable player.

Treadwell also had a career-night for the Terps vs. Butler, as she tallied a personal best 27 digs and added 13 kills and four blocks. Huddleston had three all-around matches at the Invitational, as she averaged over 12 assists per game for the tournament. Against Butler, Huddleston handed out 54 assists while posting eight kills, four blocks and five digs.

Blocking proved to be the difference for Maryland, as the Terps dominated the statistic and outblocked the Bulldogs 21 to 8. The teams battled back and forth as Maryland hit a blistering .425 in game one to earn the 30-24 victory. Butler would not go away, however, and came back to even the match at one game apiece with a determined 31-29 victory in game two. Game three was all Terrapins, as Jennifer Dewalt had four kills and the Terps cruised, 30-22, but Butler again battled back to take game four by a score of 31-29. Maryland jumped out to an early lead in the fifth and decisive game, and never relinquished the lead as they won, 15-9.

Dewalt finished the match with 10 kills and a career-high seven blocks. Rachel Wagener had another standout performance, notching 11 kills, five digs and nine blocks. Stephanie Smith also came up big for the Terps, adding 13 kills and 10 blocks. Beth Gillming was in double-digits for digs with 13, as was libero Rachel Moore with 11.

Fresh Faces

Kruger's squad welcomes five new faces in 2004. Charese Baldwin, Jade Brown, Mary Beth Brown, Beth Gillming and Katie Luhrsen are the Terps' class of 2008, along with redshirt freshman Tina Aramburu.

Gillming has seen extensive action in the back row and on the outside after recording her first career kill on Sept. 3 vs. Kansas State. In the Terps' win over Ball State on Sept. 10, Gillming tallied an impressive career-high 16 digs. She followed up with a two-kill, 14-dig performance on Sept. 12 vs. No. 2 Nebraska. While playing in 34 games on the season (the most of any freshman), Gillming is averaging 2.29 digs per game.

Luhrsen got her first collegiate action at the Houston Invitational, playing in two games vs. California on Sept. 4. Luhrsen had a strong showing, as she tallied eight digs and two assists.

Baldwin played in her first collegiate match vs. Towson on Sept. 15. She recorded her first career kills on Sept. 18 vs. Georgetown, including the match-winner.

Aramburu earned her first collegiate experience vs. Georgetown on Sept. 18, notching a dig.

Scouting Duke

The Blue Devils have a 9-3 record after most recently dropping a four-game match to arch-rival North Carolina on Sept. 21.

ACC Player of the Week Carrie DeMange (4.76 kills per game) and Tassy Rufai (3.09 kills per game) lead Duke offensively, while Stephanie Istvan (4.82 digs per game) and Jenny Shull (2.55 digs per game) anchor the defense. Istvan's average ranks her second in the ACC.

Duke, as a team, ranks first in the conference in hitting percentage (.303) and second in kills (16.26 per game).

The Blue Devil program is in its sixth season with Jolene Nagel at the helm. Nagel, who recently earned her 100th victory at Duke and her 300th victory as a head coach, is 100-64 with the Blue Devils and 303-204 overall.

Maryland trails the all-time series with Duke, 21-27, but beat the Blue Devils three times last season. The teams' last meeting, on Nov. 21, 2003 in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament, resulted in a 3-2 (23-30, 30-27, 30-23, 19-30, 15-7) Terrapin victory.

In that match, Sarah Treadwell led all players with 21 kills. She hit .321 on the night and added 14 digs. Also performing well vs. the Blue Devils was Maria DiLivio (18 kills, 15 digs), Stephanie Smith (11 kills) and Aimee Huddleston (58 assists, 10 digs).

Scouting Wake Forest

Wake Forest enters the weekend at 8-2 overall, with its only losses coming to Tennessee and Louisville.

Preseason All-ACC selection Valerie Rydberg leads the Demon Deacons, as she averages 3.71 kills per game and 3.15 digs per game. Morgan Havig ranks first in the ACC in hitting percentage (.480) and also leads the team with 1.44 blocks per game.

Wake Forest, as a team, ranks second in the conference in hitting percentage (.281) and fourth in kills (15.37).

Maryland leads the all-time series with the Demon Deacons, 17-7, including two wins in the 2003 season. The last meeting between the teams was on Oct. 21, 2003 in Reynolds Gym in Winston-Salem, a 3-1 (30-20, 30-25, 17-30, 30-24) Terp victory.

In that match, a balanced attack and solid blocking was key for Maryland, as Stephanie Smith had 17 kills and seven blocks (two solo). Rachel Wagener broke the single-season record for block assists, as she had six for the milestone.

Wake Forest is coached by Valorie Baker, who is in her fifth season.

Maryland Picked To Finish Second In ACC

The University of Maryland volleyball team was selected to finish second in the ACC Preseason Coaches Poll. The Terrapins, who earned the school's third ACC title a season ago, earned 112 points and finished just behind Georgia Tech with 116 points. Rounding out the top three was North Carolina (93) and Wake Forest (78).

Huddleston And Wagener: Preseason All-ACC

Senior setter Aimee Huddleston, a first-team All-ACC selection last season, and Rachel Wagener, a second-team honoree in 2003, represent Maryland on the preseason All-ACC squad.

Huddleston is averaging 11.49 assists per game while contributing 1.83 digs per game and 1.09 kills per game.

Wagener is averaging 2.14 kills per game and has posted 48 blocks on the year (1.40 per game).

Kruger Embarks On 17th Season At Maryland

Janice Kruger, who became the ACC's all-time winningest coach last season, returns for her 17th year at the helm of the Terrapins. Her record at Maryland is 309-203, while her overall record is 684-308-6. Last season's ACC Coach of the Year and AVCA Region Coach of the Year, Kruger won her third ACC Championship and made her fifth appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

2004 Schedule: One Of The Toughest

Maryland, which captured the ACC Championship last season en route to its fifth NCAA Tournament appearance, faced three teams that advanced to the 2003 NCAA Sweet Sixteen within the first two weeks of the fall schedule.

Maryland's home tournament took place on Sept. 17-18 in Comcast Center Pavilion and proved that its home court is a tough place to play. With four wins at home in the 2004 campaign, Maryland is now 13-5 all-time in Comcast Center.

The Terps open the ACC portion of their schedule on Sept. 24-25 at Duke and Wake Forest.

New to the ACC this year are Miami and Virginia Tech. Miami head coach, Nicole Lantagne Welch, is a former Maryland setter and will face her former coach in Kruger.

The Terrapins, who defeated Georgia Tech, 3-1, for the 2003 ACC Tournament title will look to defend their crown at this year's tournament which is being held in Charlottesville, Va., on Nov. 18-21.

The team will have a final regular-season game after that tournament, a home contest vs. Miami (Ohio) on Nov. 27.

Up Next

The Terps continue their four-match road swing with two conference matches at North Carolina and NC State next weekend. Maryland faces UNC Sat., Oct. 2 at 6 p.m. and NC State Sun., Oct. 3 at 2 p.m.

Email Straight To You

If you would like the latest Maryland volleyball news emailed to you directly as soon as it breaks, email volleyball contact Amy Mulligan at mulligan@umd.edu with "Volleyball Email" as the subject and you will receive every update distributed on the team.

Terps Travel To Duke And Wake Forest For ACC Volleyball Action

Related News

Related Videos

Footer